Method of locating water-bearing strata in bore holes



Sept. 29, 1925. 1,555,800

F. W. HUBER METHOD OF LOCATINC: WATER BEARING STRATA IN BORE HOLES Filed Aug. 26. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Bycww' /2 A T TORNE Y.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. 29l .1925. v F. W. HUBER` METHOD OF LOCATING WATER BEARING STR/ATA Il DORE HOLES Fild Aug. 26, 1924 F/y. J

ATTORNEY.;

l To all whom t may concern.'

Patented Sept. 29, 1,925.

UNITED STATES" AP1 -fratu* oFIflcr..I

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Application mea august as, 1924.- y'semi n1734374.

Be it knownthat I, FREDERICK W. Henn-R, a citizen of the United Sta-tes, residin at Riverside, in thecounty of Riverside, 'tate of California, have invented a new and us ful Method `of Locating Water-Bearing\` Strata in Bore Holes, of which the followin` is aspecification.

i his invention relates-to a `method for locating Water bearing strata in bore holes in oil or gas bearing formations and the main object of the invention is to provide a means and method whereby the location tively determined.

of such water bearing strata may be posi- In boring wells for oil or gas production considerable difficulty has arisen from the' presence of Water bearing strata encountered in the course ofdrilling or boring of such wells. In ordery to rovide for effective production of petro eum from such wells it is necessary to prevent entrance of water from the water bearing strata to the well casing, this generally being pm vided for by cementing off the well in an appropriate manner as well understood in the art. In order toprovide for effective cementing off of'water from the well it is necessary to determine in the first place the location of the water bearing strata and this has been a matter of considerable difficulty, particularlyv where the wells are drilled or bored in such manner that th`e bore is filled or partly filled with water or mud during the drilling operation. Under such circumstances and indeed under any circumstances as have heretofore existed the determination of water bearing strata has been a matter of great difficulty, expense, I and uncertainty. My invention obviates this difiiculty by providing for positive determination of the location of water bearing strata by the method hereinafter set forth, said method in its preferred form being based upon the meas: urement of electrical conductivity of the liquid in the well at various levels under specified conditions.

In carrying out mymethod I provide for establishing within the borehole, a column of liquid presenting a'sharp difference inA f the 'Said column 'ofiiqid in' the'hele thereb. determining the location of thev water caring s trata. v V The oil bearing zonkes in an Oilfield consist, usually, of alternating strata of oil sand and impermeable shale or clay and sometimes intermediate. sands which carry salme Water. The oil in the oil bearing 'sand often has atits base a very saline body ofV water known'y geologicallyv as edge water. v i

, Ifan oil or gas bore is made andthe water bearing sand 1s not sealed off it will allow the water to enter the oil sand and crowd I the oil away from the bore and it will be dilieult to make the well produce. If production can be obtained the oil will be mixed with water and will have to be dei emulsified. s On the, other hand supposing there is no intermediate water sand and the well` is on production: As the oil is drawn from say one or more sands of the series the edge water will come nearer and nearer the bore untill finally vit will enter the bore and inundate the remaining oil sands and the production will cease. This case illustrates the problem of a great many oil fields which have been developed too intensely. The loeating of .the strata making the diliculty constitutes one of the most serious problems in the oil industry. y

The oil bearing zone is sealed off from the superficial barren formation by a string of casing, called the water string which is generally cemented into place.4 The oil lzone to a point where the column of fluid in the bore hole balances the head (or hydrostatic pressure) of the water in the sand. 'Itho determining of this level is not'necessary in the application of my method. This point is called the fluid level. The water standing in the hole under these conditions is very saline. and is in static'equilibrium .with respect to the water in the sand.

In order to determine the location of the water bearing strata according to my invention it is first necessary to produce a sharpv difference in concentration opposite the sand supplying the water or the point of ingress of the water, and the rest of the water column in theA hole. I insert a string of tubing (which I term the fresh water line into the bore hole extending from ,top to bottom, connect this tubing with afresh water supply and pump the fresh Water down into the bore until it flows` over the top of the hole and until the. saline water is displaced by the fresh water. The

tubing (fresh water line) is then withdrawnfrom the bore hole and by reason of the sistance for each Adepth interval, for ex ample, by balancing the solutionresistance on a Vheatstone bridge. The readings are 'recorded and opposite the water sand a sharp decrease in resistance is noted. By plotting the resistance againstv the depth, a

curve is obtained whichA throws these differences into conspicuous relief. In order -to more accurately locatethe water stratuml and prevent errors due to temperature conditions I prefer to perform a series of measuring operations on the column of liquid in the bore hole, the liquid being bailed out to a lower level after each measuring operation, the resultant measurements for differ ent heights in the bore hole being plotted so as to give a series of check readings which eliminate accidental abnormalities, thereby giving a true indication `of the location of the water bearing strata or stratum.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the method and means by which my process may be carried out and referring thereto:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic section of a bore hole showing means for introducing fresh water in the bore hole.

Fig. 2vis a similar section of the bore hole, the water introducing piping having been removed andthe resistance measuring means having been brought to position for making a measurement.

Fig. 3 is a diagram of circuit connections for the measuring appliance.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the electrode means for applying the measuring electrical potential to any part of the column of liquid in the bore hole.

l Fig. 5 is a curve sheet such as would be made in plotting the resistance of the liquid in the bore hole at different levels.

In order that my method of locating execution of the process, such appliances being shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4. The purpose of'these appliances is to measure the conductivity of different` parts of a liquid colunm established in the bore hole as hereinafter described and such appliances include electrode means adapted 'to be exposed in contact with such liquid and means for positioning said electrode means at different heights in the bore hole, circuit means, including a source of current for applying a definite electrical potential difference to said electrodes and means for measuring the current in such circuit means `and thereby determining the iesistancean'd hence the concentration of the liquid present between the said electrodes. q

The electrodes indicated at 1 and 2 may be mounted in any suitable `manner for example within a cylinder 3' which may be of insulating material the electrodes' in any. case being insulated from one another and being mounted at' a definite distance apart and the said cylinder being open, and preferably open at. both ends, so as to allow free access of liquid to said electrodes. The electrodes 1 and 2 and their supporting and -enclosing means 3 are mounted on any suit- -able flexible suspension means such as a cable 4 which passes over suitable sheave 5 at the top ofthe bore and is connected to suitable means such asa reel 6 having suitable means such as handle 7 for operating the same to wind the cable on the reelor to unwind it therefrom, to cause ascent or descent of the electrode means in the bore hole. Said cable may be provided with markers 16 whereby it is marked off into convenientA lengths for measuring the depth at which the electrode means is locatd at any particular' instant of time or any other suita le means may be provided for indicating such depth.A Electric circuit .wires indicated at 8 and 9 are connected to the respective electrodes 1 and 2 and may. form a part of the cable (said cable -for example comprising two heavily insulated wires or conductors which are encased in a heavily insulated sheath) or may be connected thereto, said cable and Wires being of suicient 'length to permit the electrode means to be lowered to any part of a bore hole and to maintain electric connection with the electrodes in all operative positions thereof. The' 'operation by alternating current.

measuring means may comprise a Wheat' stone bridge 14 of usual construction, which is connected to a source of current or electric 'otential and to the circuit wires 10 and 11.

t is essential to the present invention that" altrnating current .should be used in measuring the electrical resistance so as to avoid errors which would result from polarization in case direct current were used, and it is also important that no ground connections should be present, and in order to satisfy these requirements I refer to use as a source of current a trans ormer whose primary winding 15 is connected to any suitable alternating current supply circuit, either single phase or polyphase, and whose secondary winding 17 is connected by wires 18 and 19 to opposite terminals of the lVheatstone bridge 14. The intermediate terminals of the -Wheatstone bridge are connected in the usual manner to a null point indicator 2() which is of a type ada ted for aid null point indicator may be provided withA energizing circuit connections 25 and 26, including resistance or lamp 27, for the field magnet coil thereof, so as to apply say 110 volts to said coil, to produce a magnetic field which operates upon an armature coil connected by circuit wires 28 and 29 to the intermediate terminals of the Wheatstone bridge in the usual manner of such alternating current measuring means. Any other electrical measuring means, responsive to alternating current may, however, be used. The transformer used may be of the iron core type, transforming for example from 110 to 6 volts, thelatter voltage being ap-A plied to the wires 18 and 19 leading to the end terminals of the Wheatstone bridge, and

the circuit connections leading to the electrode means being included in one arm of the lVheatstone bridge in the usual manner of such electrical measuring devices. By

maintaining only about 6 volts in the' lines4 leading to the electrodes I ensure operation of the ,system even when the cable insulation has become damaged by oil or otherwise as long as there is no actual short circuit.

In order that the electrode means shall operate effectively under the' conditions eX isting in the column of li uid. in the test operation as hereinafter set orth it is necessary that the surface of the electrodes which are in contact with the liquidlnot be wetted by oil but only by water and saline solutions. For this purpose I have found vit desirable to coat the surface of the metal bodyy or vconductors forming the electrodes with a gelatinous substance and I have found that,

either gelatinous silica or agar may be usedA advantageously 'for this pur se. Thegelat- .inous silica is however on y applicable to platinum or gold electrodes or to their acld resisting alloys.- To coat such an electrode I allow water glass of about'1.15 sp. gr. to harden in a thin film upon the electrode and then immerse it in a very dilute solution of mineral acid, which inthe course of a few hours will form a gelatinous coating of silicio acid. This is then washed free of 'electrolytes and kept in a water saturatedatmosphere until ready for use.

With the baser metals such as nickel (which I prefer to use in actual field work) I simply coat the cleaned electrode surface with a thin 'film of agar dissolved (dis-o persed) in hot distilled water, by dipping the electrode in the 'agar infusion and allowing to 'set, repeating the dip ing and setting until a uniform and thin film is o btained over the entire electrode surface.' The electrode after the agar has set is kept in water until ready for use. It is also of advantage to first cover the cleaned electrode with a fine cambric cloth and then. saturate this cloth with hot agar infusion and build up,.on this covering a fine glaze of set agar,

It is also of advantage, for particularly se` foot bore hole.

The electrodes so coated with the oil repelling film, give in the laboratory when tested against uncoated electrodes'practically the same readings instantly. That is it takes but an instant or the electrolyte or rather the ions to penetrate the film.

As a practical illustration of the application of my inventionv for locating the position in a bore hole of lthe oint of ingress of saline water I proceed as ollows:

In Figs. 1 and 2the well is shown dia grammatically, the oil string being indicated at 21 and the water string at 22. The oil string is provided with the usual perforations adjacent the oil sands, and the water string 1s cemented in the usual manner to cement oil' water strata above the oil culating through a string of tubing, indisands. The hole is first conditioned by circated at 23 in Fig. 1 and reaching from top i to bottom of the bore hole, a supply of fresh water until it flows freely out o the top of the casin and until substantially all of the original uid of the hole is displaced. During such Washing operation, the fresh water not only displaces the water from the bore hole and fills the same, but may also penetrate the surrounding strata to a certain extent as indicated at 30 in Fig. 1, the oil and salt water existing in such strata `bein thereby forced back away from the bore ole, as at 31. The tubing 23 is then removed from the. borehole. leaving in the `bore hole a column offresh water which may extendalmost to the top of the bore hole and which in general will be considerably above' the.

original fluid level forthe bore hole. I have found that under these conditions there is a tendency for the salt water of relatively high saline concentration present in the so-called water strata or water sands to diffuse into the column of fresh water in the bore hole producing zones of relatively sharp difference in saline concentration at parts of the water column opposite such water strata or thewater sand. Under these conditions there will therefore be 'opposite' each point of ingress of saline water a zone or column of water ,-whose salinity is decidedly greaterv than the balance of the water in the hole. The properly connected electrode means as shown in-Fig. 4, is now lowered bymeans ofthe reel 6 into the hole f as shown in Fig.- 2 and the resistance is tion is continued until the bottom o hole is reached. On pulling out reverse kept balanced `vfor each space interval as indicated by the markers 16, the value of this resistance .is recorded and this 0 riareadings are ormay be taken at the various points as a check. These results are plotted against the depth, for example as shown in Fig. 5 by curve cc. The resulting curve will show strong points of inflection such as indicated at h1 and h2 opposite the points of ingress ofthe saline water. `The resistance of the solution between the electrodes may be measured and plotted in an 4suitable units or as shown in' Fig. '5, suc

resistances may be conveniently plotted as relative resistances, any convenient remay re-enter the bore hole as at 33 in Fig.

2 and cause an increase in salinity of the wateropposite such oil stratum, so lthat in` the first series of conductivity measurements, there may appear a false indication l of a water stratum at such point.

As a further check on the operation and for the found that by ditions which may exist in the water column due to presence of salt water in the column, and particularly at its upper portion, on account of returning salt water from an oil stratum as above described, or any causes other than by infiltration from the` water strata proper, I prefer to make a seriesof successive` measurements in the following manner:

A -standard of resistance is first determined by immersing the electrodes in a salt solution consisting of or corresponding in concentration to the salt solution from the water sand or water strata and originally resent in the bore hole before the same was lIled with fresh water. The resistance corresponding to this concentration is Ameasured and fplotted on a sheet ofA plotting par, as in icated by the line b?) in Fig. 5.

easurements are then made at successive heights or points in the water column in the bore hole after withdrawal of the fresh water supply tubing and such measurements are plotte as indicated by the curve shown at c-c in Fig.l v5. The water in the bore hole is then bailed out to a somewhat lower level and a series 'of measurements is taken at different heights or Vlevels in the bore hole giving a second `series of resistance readings which are plotted as indicated by curve d-d. The water in the bore hole is then bailed out to a further lower level and .purpose of eliminating such accidental con-l y another series Aof resistance readings taken` at diierent levels and another curve `ee plotted.` At each successive operation of this kind the resistance for corresponding points'or levels in the bore holesdecreases owing to increase of salinity by continued diffusion and low of saline water from the water sands, but in addition to this effect there is found to be a .'very much sharper deflection of the zones of relatively low resistance corresponding to the locations of the water stratum or strata, and I have also such successive measuring operations accidental abnormalities in saline concentration or inresistance due to causes other than diffusion from a water stratum can be eliminated. Thus as shown in Fig. 5 there may be presented in the first measurement a zone or int of relatively low resistance indicate at ho, which is not found in the curve correspondin to subse uent check measurements and w 'ch may t erefore be assumed to bedue to accidental causes and not to indicate the sition of a water bearing stratum.y Any esired num# vber of successive check readings may be made as above described until the location of the water bearing stratum or strata is sufficiently defined but in general it will be desirable to continue the successive operations of bailing out to lower levels followed by resistance measurements at different hei hts until the resistance indicated b eac point h,- h etc., approaches the stan ard resistance indicated b the line b-J).

In some cases, when t e water entering .the bore hole from the water` stratum has relativel low salinity, it will be desirable to intro u ce into the well (instead of fresh water) water of relatively high salinity, the reading for a zone oppositesuch a water stratum thus indicating relatively high resistance, and in general my invention rovides for establishing in the bore ho e a water column of diiferent'saline concentration from that of. the water in the water bearing stratum to be located, and then determinmg the location in such a water column of any zone diiferin in salinity from the normal salinity o such water column. I

To carry out the invention most effectively the following conditions should be observed:

First, the bore hole must 4be conditioned i so as to produce a sharp difference in concentration between the water or fluid opposite the water bearing strata and the rest of the water or fluid in the hole.

, Second, the electrodes used for measurin the resistance must be so prepared an ltreated thatthey will not be wet by oil or oil-water emulsions but only by water and saline solutions.

, Third, the current used for such measurements should preferably be alternating to prevent the electrolysis of the saline solution with its possible resulting polarization which would gi/ve erroneous values for the resistance measurements.

Fourth, the current used (alternating) must originate in such a manner that the circuit for measuring the resistance will at all times be free from an electrical ground to the bore hole casing.

In regard to the requirement above stated as to the nature of the electrode surfaces that are exposed to the liquid, it may be pointed out,that the column of fluid standing in the hole usually has at its top a layer Y of oil or oil-water emulsion varying from a few feet to several hundred feet 1n depth and below this to the bottom there will inevitably be patches of oil or oil saturated gas, which enter the bore hole. These substances adhere most tenaciously to all metals lmown to me that could be used for electrodes and would prevent the accurate reading of the resistance between the electrodes. This was found to be a serious diiiifculty in the early attempts at operation of.

VEto this all important problem, and by coating the electrode as above described with a thin ilm lof gelatinous material which would `not be wetted by oil but only by water and tion 735,330led September 2, 1924.

The electrode means shown in the present case are not `cla1med herem, but 1n a copending application 756,156, filed December 15, 1924.

What I claim is:

1. The method of determining the location of water bearing strata in bore holes which consists in establishing in the bore hole a column of water of relatively low saline concentration and permitting the formation therein of zones of relatively high concentration opposite each water bearing stratum, measuring the saline concentration at different heights in the said column, to determine the location of such zones of relatively high saline concentration, withdrawing water from such column to lower the upper level thereof, and repeating the measurement of saline concentration at different levels in said column to give a more. exact and sharper indication of the location of zones of relatively high saline concentration.

vconcentration opposite each water bearing stratum, measuring the electrical resistance of the' liquid at different heights in the said column, to-determine the location of such zones of relatively high saline concentration, withdrawing water from such column to lower the upper level thereof, and repeating the measurement of electrical resistance of the liquid at diferent levels in said column to giveA a more exact and sharper indication of the location of zones of relatively highv saline concentration.

3. The method of determining the location of water -bearing strata in bore holes which consists in establishing in the borev hole a column of water of relatively low saline concentration and permitting the formation therein of zones of relatively high concentration opposite each water bearing stratum, measuring the electrical resistance of the liquid at different heights in the said column, to determine the location of such zones of relatively highA saline concentration, successively withdrawing water from such column to lower the upper level thereof in a plurality of steps, and repeating the measurement of electrical resistance of the liquid at different levels in said column at each of said stages of the location of-Iany zoneof the water column resulting so as ,to lower the upper level thereof, and .l0

thereafter making a further series of meas` water column to givea more exact and* *urements of the saline concentration at shar r indication of location of zones of relatively high saline concentration.

4. The method of determining the location of a water bearing stratum in a bore hole in which salt water is present from such stratum which comprises introducing into the bore hole at the lower portion thereof, fresh water in amount suflicient to displace the salt water in the bore hole, and then making successive measurements of saline concentration at different levels in the resulting water column remaining in the bore hole after the discontinuance of said water supply so as to determine the location of a zone of relatively high saline concentration in said water column, resulting from diffusion of salt into said zone from an adjacent water stratum, thereafter withdrawing Water from said column so as to lower the upper level thereof after the measurements aforesaid have been made and thereafter making a further series of saline concentration measurements at different levels in the water column after the u lper level of the water column has thus n lowered so as to give a lmore vexact` and .sharper indication of the location of zones of relatively high saline concentration.

5. The method of determining the location of a water bearing stratum in a bore hole in which water is present from such stratum which consists in introducing into the bore hole at the lower portion thereof, water of diierent saline concentration from that of the water in the water bearing stratum, until there is roduced in the bore hole, a water column o dierent saline concentration from the water in the water bearing stratum, discontinuing suchwater suppl and lmaking successive measurements of saline concentration at different levels in the resulting watercolumn remainin in the bore hole after the discontinuance o the said water supply so as` to determine the different levels in the water column so as to give a more exact and sharper indication of the location ofthe zone of different saline concentration from the remainder of the column. l

6. The method of determining the location of a water bearing stratum in a bore hole, which consists inestablishing within the bore hole a water column of different saline concentration from that of the water in the water bearing stratum, and permitting therein the formation opposite to the'water bearing stratum, of a zone of different saline concentration from the rest of the column by diusion from said stratum into said zone, measuring the saline concentration at different heights in said column, withdrawing water from said column so as to lower the upper levelthereof and repeating the measurement of saline concentration at different levels in said column, so as to definitely, determine the location of such zone of different saline concentration opposite such water bearing stratum.

7.v A process as set forth in claim 6 in which the measurement of saline concentration is effected by measurement of the relative electrical= resistance at .different levels in the said column.

8. In determinin the location of waterbearing stratain re holes, the steps of lowering the liquid level in the bore hole a short distance and determining the relative electrical conductivity of the aqueous liquid at many points in then-depth thereof, and repeating such sequence of steps a plurality of times, until sharp diierences in the electrical conductivity are definitely located. f

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this 21st day of August, 1924.

FREDERICK W. HUBER. 

